16th - 22nd June Refugee Week

Refugee Week is the world’s largest festival celebrating the contributions, resilience and creativity of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. It started in the UK in 1998 and has since become an international festival and movement celebrated in 22 different countries.

There are students from overseas at the school I teach at, but they are not refugees. This makes our job as teachers harder as most of our students would have no interaction with refugees, but they do need to know about refugees given the troubled times they live in and the fact that there will no doubt be more refugees looking for receptive countries in which to resettle.

Fortunately, there are so many wonderful children's books to use as introductions to the dilemmas that face them and to their amazing resilience, bravery and persistence. These books help our students build knowledge and empathise with refugees' lives.

Ozlitteacher has devised a useful framework of questions as part of a refugee reading spine to help teachers plan what books they share.

Question prompts for three parts:

Before migration

• Why might people choose to leave their home country?
• What circumstances could lead to this?
• What’s the difference between an asylum seeker, a refugee and a migrant?

During migration

• How do refugees travel to Australia?
• What challenges can they face along the way?

After migration

• How do refugees build new lives in their new country?
• What challenges can they face upon arrival?

I have kept a Pinterest list of books here and together with Momotimetoread here.

Refugees and Homelands  by Louise Spilbury and Toby Newsome

This book explains civil rights and the reasons why refugees flee their homelands in an accessible way for younger readers.Throughout history, people have been forced to flee their homelands for many different reasons. These people have gone to new lands in the hope of a better life or for protection. In this historical look at refugees, readers will discover some of the many reasons why people leave their homes to go to a new land. 

However for the very young students I teach I find these books are good starting points.

What is a Refugee  by Elise Gravel

Who are refugees? Why do they need to leave their country?
In this simple, graphic and bold picture book, author/illustrator Elise Gravel explores what it means to be a refugee. This book is the perfect tool to introduce an important and timely topic to young children in an accessible and straightforward way.

My Name is Not Refugee  by Kate Milner

A young boy discusses the journey he is about to make with his mother. They will leave their town, she explains, and it will be sad but also a little bit exciting. They will have to say goodbye to friends and loved ones, and that will be difficult. They will have to walk and walk and walk, and although they will see many new and interesting things, it will be difficult at times too. A powerful and moving exploration that draws the young reader into each stage of the journey, inviting the chance to imagine the decisions he or she would make.

Counting Kindness  by Hollis Karma and Barroux

A compassionate counting book that captures the power of a welcoming community. Teaches children about refugees and how each kindness can help them find a new home. 

Story Boat  by Kyo Maclear

When you have to leave behind almost everything you know, where can you call home? Sometimes home is simply where we are- here.When a little girl and her younger brother are forced along with their family to flee the home they've always known, they must learn to make a new home for themselves -- wherever they are. And sometimes the smallest things -- a cup, a blanket, a lamp, a flower, a story -- can become a port of hope in a terrible storm.

The Little Refugee by Anh Do 

This is an autobiography by the children's author Anh Do and as his books are so popular with my students I find that this book relates to them in a very real way. They feel that they 'know' a refugee.

Refugee Week, is using Moomin artwork to celebrate this year’s theme “Community as a Superpower” and to adorn 10 Simple Acts that anyone can do to stand in solidarity with refugees. In London A 6-metre high Moominhouse decorated by children equipped with hammers, a refugee tent containing a dream of a better future, a Moomin-inspired raft, and bird nests symbolising home and belonging – Refugee Week presents four different art installations inspired by the Moomin stories.